


Nameless

by orphan_account



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/F, post-AoU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-04
Updated: 2016-01-04
Packaged: 2018-05-11 15:25:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5631484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Maria and Natasha have done a lot of things, but a label keeps eluding them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nameless

For once, Natasha and Maria  were in the same place at the same time, and there  wasn't an immediate crisis.  There was something between them, but neither of them had chose to describe it with a word yet. There had been some stolen kisses and nights spent together between disasters, but Natasha didn't feel like she could call Maria her girlfriend. They hadn't had enough time to work this out.

Now that they did, it terrified her. 

She still wanted to spend time with Maria, though, so for now, it remained ambiguous. That was another strange thing – the both of them actually had significant amounts of free time to spend with each other, and didn't live that far apart. In fact, they lived absurdly close. Maria's quarters were just down the hall from Natasha's  in the New Avengers Facility , and Natasha found herself going there now, wondering if Maria was in the mood for company. 

Natasha knocked on the door, waiting for Maria to answer. She told herself she shouldn't be this nervous, and that casually visiting her friend wasn't out of the question. When the door opened to reveal Maria, Maria was smiling, and Natasha was glad that at least her company was appreciated.

“Hey, you. Is something up, or did you come over just because?” Maria beckoned for Natasha to come in, and Natasha followed her inside. After a moment of nervous hesitation, Natasha stood up on her tiptoes to press a brief kiss to Maria's cheek in greeting. The taller woman's cheeks tinged a bit, and Natasha smirked a little, pleased. 

“Just wanted to see you, that's all. We haven't really had a chance to visit much since we both moved in here, that's all.” _I miss you, and I feel pretty silly for it._ Natasha curled up on Maria's couch, curling around her knees and sinking into the corner, as was her usual habit. Maria sat down beside her, keeping a slight distance, but she rested her arm over the top of the couch in back of Natasha. 

“Glad you came to see me, then,” Maria said. Things still felt a little awkward between them, and Natasha wished Maria would move her arm down to actually wrap around her shoulders, instead of just resting on the couch. “How's wrangling the new team going? I'm up to my ears in paperwork, so I haven't really had a chance to watch you guys train.”

“We're...working on it. But we'll get there.” Natasha worked well with Steve, but the team wasn't exactly cohesive, and everyone, including herself, was still pretty wary of Wanda. She hoped that would pass eventually, though. “In the meantime, though, I'm glad to have a break.” She paused. “You know, I miss sparring with you. We should do that again sometime.” She nudged Maria gently. “You know, to keep you from getting soft while doing all that paperwork.”

Maria scowled, although her expression had a faint playfulness to it. 

“I'm not getting _soft.”_ She rolled up one sleeve of her shirt and flexed a bicep in front of Natasha, and Natasha nodded appreciatively. That was one thing she would never get tired of seeing. 

“Okay, point taken. But I'd still love to spar with you again sometime.” _I miss spending time with you._

“You know I'm gonna kick your ass, right?”

“You can try.” Natasha stifled a laugh, and earned a playful glare from Maria. 

“We'll see about that.” Maria wrapped her arm around Natasha in a brief, obviously faked headlock, and Natasha took advantage of the opportunity to slip into her embrace. She heard Maria chuckle from behind her, and then Maria's arms were around her, pulling her close as the smaller spoon. 

“I've missed this,” Natasha finally admitted out loud, settling back against Maria's chest. God, that felt good. “Missed _you_.” Natasha felt Maria press a kiss against her hair, her lips lingering there. There was still that ever present question that neither of them dared to vocalize – _what are we?_

“Wow, I've gotten Romanoff to be sentimental. Sappy, almost.” There was a softness to Maria's voice, though, and Natasha couldn't quite find it in her to scowl. Especially when Maria continued.

“I missed you too,” Maria murmured against her hair, and the closeness made Natasha shiver a little. Natasha was almost never relaxed, but she came pretty damn close when Maria was holding her. So she supposed she had every reason to want to be sappy. 

“I'll come by more often, okay? And you're always welcome at my place.” That was something she had previously only reserved for Clint, and she surprised herself as the words came out of her mouth. Maria gave her a gentle squeeze, and Natasha moved her hands up to hold Maria's. 

“Thank you.” Maria's tone indicated that she knew how much that meant, and Natasha was glad she didn't have to say so out loud. Saying she missed Maria was almost enough sap for one night. If they were normal people, she supposed they would be girlfriends. Friends with benefits didn't tend to relax in each other's arms and kiss each other's hair. 

M aybe they  _ did _ have time for something like that now, if Maria wanted it. The idea of actually saying that out loud was mildly terrifying, though, and Natasha fell silent, trying to enjoy Maria's touch and not think about that too much. A healthy relationship was something she had never really had before, and she wasn't even sure how that worked. They were silent for a while, Maria gently stroking the side of Natasha's hand with her thumb, until Maria spoke again. 

“Something on your mind? Or am I so warm that you fell asleep?” Maria peeked over Natasha's shoulders, and Natasha turned in her arms, moving so she could lean her head on Maria's shoulder and see her face. 

“Not this time.” That was a very real risk, though, because Maria was like a human furnace. Natasha had fallen asleep on her multiple times, and there was definitely a likelihood of that happening later today, if she stayed for a while. Natasha was silent again for a moment, and then forced the words out, because they were going to drive her crazy if she didn't. 

“Do you – do you want to be in a relationship with me?” The words sounded incredibly stilted, and Natasha couldn't help cringing. “Like the real, adult kind. Whatever it is normal people do.” _Suave, Romanoff._

Maria blinked in surprise, but there was a soft smile on her face. She tilted Natasha's chin up to look at her again, because Natasha had looked away out of embarrassment. 

“I guess that _is_ what we're doing, aren't we?” 

If this had been anyone else but Maria, Natasha would have turned away, too spooked to make eye contact, but there was something about Maria that made her feel safe. So she kept her gaze on the other woman, waiting for her to continue. She was sure Maria could hear how quickly her heart was beating, and she tried not to be too embarrassed about it.

“I'd like that. If you would,” Maria said finally, and Natasha felt a wave of relief. She hadn't crushed what they had, and they wouldn't need to maintain that weird, delicate balance anymore. Feeling a burst of emotion, she leaned up and kissed Maria on the lips. The gesture was slower and less frantic than their usual kisses were, and Maria leaned into the kiss, gently running her hand over Natasha's hair. 

Natasha wasn't quite sure how long the kiss lasted, but when they broke apart, she felt like a tangled, tense knot within her had finally unraveled. They would still take it slow, of course, but it was an incredible relief to have a name for what had developed between them. 

“I assume that was a yes,” Maria finally said breathlessly, around a faint smile. Her face was flushed red now, and Natasha always felt a little smug when she made Maria blush. 

“Definitely a yes.” Natasha paused. “But I'm still gonna kick your ass later.” 

Maria laughed. 

“Wanna bet?” 


End file.
